A collaboration between Blanquerna-URL and UVic-UCC culminates in the patent for an innovative device for improving sports performance and people's health

The doctoral thesis currently being written by the Blanquerna-URL doctoral student Joan Aguilera, jointly supervised by Bernat Buscà, a senior lecturer at the URL, and Javier Peña, the director of the Physical Activity and Sports Studies Centre (CEEAF) at UVic-UCC, has led to an application for a patent for an innovative device to improve the results of strength training, and to prevent sports injuries and other pathologies. As well as this new application, the fifth by UVic-UCC, the CEEAF has also begun the process involved in creating a spin-off to develop and market the product, and bring the research to market.

Last June, the two parties signed an agreement governing the rights to ownership and exploitation of the valorised results of the thesis. Given the nature of the process involved in obtaining industrial property rights, the technical specifications of the device cannot yet be made public.

The project was selected also to enter The Collider 2020 of the Mobile World Capital, a deep tech transfer initiative which helps to create high-performance teams and provides support in bringing technology to market, by creating companies with disruptive technologies.

The result of a doctoral thesis

The patent is the result of a research project led by Bernat Buscà, which aims to determine the effect of devices which cause instability and those that offer mechanical vibration as an additional stimulus in strength training. This project includes the doctoral thesis by Joan Aguilera, who has been researching these phenomena in recent years.

According to its joint supervisor, Javier Peña, "when we saw the results obtained in various studies in this thesis, we realised that not all the devices currently on the market and available to athletes allowed us to apply the optimal conditions for receiving the maximum benefits." That was the starting point for the design process of the device that has been submitted for patenting, and for which a prototype was created that has been tested in several proof of concepts.

According to Peña, the fact that the patent is the result of a doctoral thesis shows that "research must be able to be transferred and change something in the area of knowledge," and he asks "what better way to do it in our field that by inventing new devices that enable training and high levels of quality, safety and efficiency?"

A three-way project

The fact that it is a three-way project has led to a need for improved coordination, but it has also been possible to undertake the project due to the combination of various initiatives, knowledge and perspectives. "I think this situation adds value to the project. Being able to mentor Joan Aguilera with the help of my thesis supervisor, Dr Bernat Buscà, has allowed me to learn a lot over this time. We have also been supported by the Technology Transfer Offices at both UVic-UCC and Blanquerna-URL, which have contributed their value and know-how," says Peña.

Towards a spin-off

Being able to have a patent opens up the possibility of setting up a company, and therefore adding a new spin-off to the UVic-UCC ecosystem. It is not an easy process, but joining The Collider, by having passed the initial selection phase, has been a decisive step. As a result, the project has received financial support, mentoring - in the preparation of a business plan, market studies and projections for future development, and above all a working methodology "that has set us in the right direction," as "our idea is much better now and we see things more clearly," says the director of the CEEAF. He also says that "it has been a demanding but extremely enriching process."

The project continues to move forward while awaiting the ruling of the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (SPTO) on this new device. "Thanks to the latest URL research grants, the prototype is improving in terms of its usability and size to bring it closer to the market. The business strategy, which has still to be finalised, will be defined in the coming months," says Buscà.

A second iteration of the prototype is currently being created and more concept testing is under way, although Covid-19 is not making things easy. Meanwhile, contacts are being made with several partners that can bring new insights, such as the Guttman Institute, which was contacted through The Collider.

The importance of valorisation of the results

The Valorisation and Knowledge Transfer Unit is committed to patents and entrepreneurship as the best means of transferring knowledge and the results of research by UVic-UCC to society, companies and industries in the region. At the Unit, Marc Serra says that "obtaining industrial property rights (patents and utility models) means that the market can be accessed more easily." And he adds that "when we protect knowledge, we ensure the exclusive nature of technology, while for companies, both spin offs and others, it is a guarantee of the economic viability of the investments needed to deliver the results of research as products and services to people."

Cristina Manjón, head of Research and Innovation at Blanquerna-URL, explains that "the commercialisation of research has become a new broad-based discipline experiencing considerable growth," which "enables the development of technology and knowledge created in the university environment, in products of value to the public, which make the economy grow and improve the quality of life at the same time."

She adds that "during the journey in research towards the protection of a patent, each milestone represents a team effort. At Blanquerna we aim to turn research into a great multidisciplinary experience, and place it at the service of people, and at the same time be able to offer researchers a different perspective on science, business and innovation."

The Research and Knowledge Transfer Office of UVic-UCC, on both the UVic and UManresa campuses, has received co-financing from the Catalonia EDRF Operational Programme 2014-2020 for the project "Economic and social transformation of the territory through collaborative leadership of technological and innovative projects" in the call by the Secretariat for Universities and Research of the Ministry of Economy and Knowledge, to undertake projects for valorisation units and the transfer of knowledge by Catalonia's universities aimed at significantly improving interaction with the production sector. Order EMC/ 348/2016.